Okay, so you’ve read this blog post and are now armed with a short-term and long-term goal. Now what? Well, a helpful way to move forward is with a SMART Goal. This concept helps turn ideas into action. And we’re going to walk you through it!

What even is a SMART goal? SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound. There are a few different versions out there, but this is the one that works best for our purposes/health-based goals!

Making sure your goal has each of these components is CRUCIAL to setting yourself up for success. Missing even just one of these elements can leave you feeling lost or stuck. 

So, without further ado… Let’s talk about how you can make your goal SMART!

Specific.

That’s right – we’ve gotta get SPECIFIC. Ya can’t just say “I want to eat healthier.” What the heck does that even mean? Having goals that are vague might give you a step in the right direction, but we’re trying to DIVE head first into this. Calculated, intentional, and – you guessed it – specific.

Break it down a little more! Maybe that means adding a vegetable to your dinner or ensuring each of your snacks have a protein source. Maybe it’s having fruit at breakfast, or even simply HAVING breakfast.

Ask yourself: what do I actually need to do to get closer to my goal?

Measurable.

Okay, now that you know what you’re going to do, how will you measure it? How will you know when you reached your goal and it’s time to celebrate? Defining how you’ll measure your progress will again make sure you’re approaching your plan with intention. Having that tangible data to say “yes I’m doing it” or “maybe I need to make some adjustments” is incredibly valuable.

Let’s say you’re trying to “read more.” When you got specific, you decided to read [insert title of book here] before bed. But how do you want to measure that or measure “more?” Do you want to use a habit tracker and if you do, do you want to specify how many pages you’ll get through or how long you’ll read for?

What measurement feels right for you and this particular goal?

Achievable.

Now, look back on your specific goal and how you plan on measuring it. Is this honestly, truly, achievable? Are you jumping from 0 to 100 real quick? Or does this feel like a gentle step that’s still somewhat challenging? Whether or not your goal is realistic will determine if you’re setting yourself up for success or failure.

Because, let’s be real: if you’ve never worked out a day in your life and decide you want to do 45 minute workouts 5 out of 7 days next week… you might be setting yourself up for failure and that just ain’t the goal! Honor where you’re at right now. Your body, motivation, and self-esteem will thank you. ❤️

So, this is your chance to go back and make adjustments. Would a 10-minute walk twice this week be more achievable?

Relevant.

This one may seem obvious, but it’s a necessary thing to consider. It’s easy to get lost in the “right now” and lose sight of the bigger picture.

How relevant is this goal to what you wrote down earlier? This plan should represent a clear path toward your short-term and/or long-term goals. If it doesn’t help get you to where you want to be, maybe it’s worth putting your time and energy somewhere else. 

For example… If your long-term goal was about trying to eat better, but you just set a fitness goal, something isn’t aligning. What would be more relevant?

Time-Bound.

By now you’ve got a solid plan, it just needs one final touch! It’s important to decide how long you’ll do this for. What’s your time frame for this goal?

Why is this important? Because you’ll need to assess. If your time is indefinite you won’t have an opportunity to celebrate success and/or make adjustments. We recommend approaching goals one week at a time, but of course do what feels right for you!

After the week is over and you see how it went, you can decide to repeat the same SMART Goal, adjust it to push you in better ways, or create a new one that suits you better for the next week! We’re always changing and our SMART Goals should, too.

Let’s put this into action!

Having a goal is one thing, but creating an action plan to make it happen is another thing. It’s time to put pen to paper!

Create your very own SMART Goal and begin taking action! Becoming your favorite version of yourself starts today 👑💕